Method and system for remotely directing a fishing tournament

ABSTRACT

A method for remotely directing a fishing tournament makes use of a data network over which participants transmit submissions indicating sizes of fish caught. The submissions may include digital images of fish, and size may be determined from a scale established using a reference object depicted in the image. The data network may also be used to register participants and provide them with tournament results. Participants may register for a fishing period, or multiple fishing periods of the tournament, and may be issued a code to be displayed in images of fish. Validation of entries may include an examination of metadata in submitted digital images.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application takes priority from U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationNo. 60/873,018, filed Dec. 6, 2006.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a method and system for remotelydirecting a fishing tournament using a data network such as theInternet. More specifically, the present invention relates to a methodand system for registering contest participants, receiving entries fromparticipants, determining fish sizes from digital images submitted byparticipants and reporting the contest winners.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Fishing contests, typically referred to as “tournaments,” allow anglersto compete against one other in trying to catch the longest or heaviestfish, or collection of fish, over a given period of time. Traditionally,such tournaments are held in a fixed location, and the fish are killedin order to allow them to be measured or weighed at the end of thecontest. Recently, however, there has been significant interest in“catch and release” fishing, in which an angler returns a fish to thewater alive after catching it. To conduct a tournament in which the fishare not killed, however, requires evidence of the size of the fish, suchas a photograph. In addition, it would be desirable to hold a tournamentin which participants may be remote from one another, and/or where theorganization and direction of the tournament is remote from theparticipants.

U.S. Patent Application No. US 2003/0115265 (“Kitade”) discloses asystem and method for holding a location-independent fishing competitionin which a sponsor of the competition communicates with participants viathe Internet to organize and direct the contest. The participantsregister for a tournament held during a specific time period bytransmission of data over the Internet. After the fishing period isover, they then submit digital images of fish before a predetermineddeadline to be compared with those of other participants. To ensure thatthe image was taken during the fishing period, an “article ofcertification” must also be shown in the image. The article ofcertification is an object of a specific type that is designated by thesponsor, and the identity of which is provided to the participants atthe outset of the fishing period.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In accordance with some embodiments of the present invention, a methodand system are provided which allow the remote direction of a fishingtournament. A data network, which typically includes the Internet, isused for at least part of the communication between a tournamentdirector and tournament participants. In conducting the tournament, thetournament director remotely records each fishing catch via informationtransmitted over the data network. In a particular embodiment, digitalimages of fish are received over the data network from participants. Theimages contain a reference object adjacent to the fish to allow adetermination of scale. By using the scale provided by the referenceobject, a size of the fish may be determined, and the established sizemay be stored together with related data regarding the catch.

The size measurement of the fish may be in one dimension, such as thelength of the fish. In such a case, the reference object may be a linearmeasurement device. Two-dimensional measurements, or the use of othermeasurement criteria, are also possible. In one embodiment, a humanfacial biometric, such as the limbus of the human eye, is used as areference object. Other means of determining the size of the fish,without the use of a reference object, are also possible.

The data network may also be used to collect data to register tournamentparticipants and to provide to participants, at the end of thetournament, an indication of one or more winning submissions. Theparticipants may also be provided with a code, by transmission over thedata network or via other communication means, that is to be displayedas part of submitted digital images. The code is issued a fixed amountof time prior to the commencement of a particular fishing period, andits use ensures that the images were taken during the fishing period inquestion. In one variation, each participant is issued a different codeunique to that participant.

In an illustrative embodiment of the invention, participants areregistered for the tournament by receiving data transmitted over a datanetwork. The tournament may have multiple fishing periods within thetournament duration and, if so, each participant may register for one ormore of the fishing periods. During the tournament, participationsubmissions are received over the data network. The submissions includeindications of size of fish caught by participants, such as through theuse of digital images of fish and reference objects, as discussed above.The submissions are validated as relating to fish caught during thecorresponding fishing period or periods for which the correspondingparticipants were registered, and as being accurate indications of fishsize. Different means of validation may be used, including examining themetadata in an image file submitted by a participant. The absence ofmetadata, or an indication in the metadata of a prohibited type ofediting of the image may be used as a basis for rejecting a submission.At the end of the tournament period, at least one winning participant isdetermined based on the sizes of fish caught by participants asindicated in the validated submissions. An indication of one or morewinning submissions is then provided to the participants over the datanetwork.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

Embodiments of the invention will be described by way of example onlywith reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of computing devices implementing a systemfor measuring a fish;

FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a network where computing devices areconnected to a system for measuring a fish through a network;

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram depicting a method of measuring a fishaccording to a non-limitative embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3A is a flow diagram depicting a method of measuring a fish using abiometric feature of a human depicted in an image with the fish;

FIG. 3B is a flow diagram depicting a validation process of a submissionusing metadata in a digital image;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of a digital image of a fish and a referenceobject;

FIG. 5 is a schematic view of a digital image of a fish, a referenceobject and a validation code;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of an alternative embodiment of the digitalimage of FIG. 5;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of the digital image of FIG. 6 to which isadded a contrasting background;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of a digital image of a fish, a referencegrid and a validation code;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a digital image of a participant with alocation indicator and a first validation tag; and

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a digital image of a participant with alocation indicator and a second validation tag.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

An integral part of remotely directing a fishing tournament is providinga means to determine the size of fish submitted by participants. It ispossible to rely on self-reporting on the part of participants, or toprovide some form of verification by a third party. However, it is alsopossible to use digital images of fish submitted by participants toestablish and/or verify fish sizes.

Referring to FIG. 1, users may directly access a system for measuring afish implemented on, for example, a personal computer 12 or a laptopcomputer 16, equipped with, for example, a digital scanner 14 or adigital camera 18 with which to obtain a digital image of a fish to bemeasured.

Alternatively, with reference to FIG. 2, users using remote accesssoftware, such as, for example, a web browser installed on the personalcomputer 12, the laptop computer 16 or a cell phone 19, may remotelyaccess a system 20 for measuring a fish implemented on a central systemthrough, for example, a web site on a server 22. The server 22 may alsobe connected to a database 24 for storing submitted digital images offish along with measurement results. Furthermore, in the context of afishing tournament, the server 22 may also implement tournamentsoftware. The personal computer 12 and laptop computer 16 may connect tothe server 22 using an Internet connection 32 such as, for example,Ethernet (broadband, high-speed), wireless WiFi, cable Internet,satellite connection, etc., and the cell phone 19 using a cellular orsatellite network 34.

The users may use various devices such as, for example, the digitalscanner 14, the digital camera 18 or the cell phone 19 comprising adigital camera to provide digital images of fishes to the system formeasuring a fish.

Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown a flow diagram depicting themethod of measuring a fish according to a non-limitative embodiment ofthe present invention. The method may be executed either by the personalcomputer 12, the laptop computer 16 or the server 22 (shown in FIG. 2).The steps of the process are indicated by blocks 102 to 114.

The process starts at step 102 where a digital image 40 of a fish 42 andreference object 44, as shown in FIG. 4, is obtained either directly orremotely from, for example, the digital scanner 14, the digital camera18 or the cell phone 19. Advantageously, the reference object 44 is of apredefined length. Some examples of reference objects include a linearmeasurement device, such as a ruler or tape measure, or another objectof predetermined size from which a scale may be determined in the image.

In step 104 the contour of the reference object 44 is identified, eithermanually, by setting reference points at a first end of the referenceobject 44 and a second reference point at a second end of the referenceobject 44, or automatically by using, for example, an image processingalgorithm for identifying contours of objects, for example using hue ortexture variations. Advantageously, the reference object 44 may be of aspecific color or texture not likely to be found in any fish so as toheighten color or texture contrasts.

In step 106 the system 20 determines a relative length of the referenceobject 44 by computing, for example, the number of pixels along itslongest axis generally parallel to sides of its identified contour.Alternatively, the length may be determined by a scale shown on thereference object, or by knowledge of a fixed dimension of the object.

In step 108 the contour of the fish 42 is identified, either manually,by setting reference points at a first end of the fish 42 and a secondreference point at a second end of the fish 42, or automatically byusing, for example, an image processing algorithm for identifyingcontours of object, for example using hue or texture variations.Advantageously, the image processing algorithm may be defined such as torecognize specific colors or textures commonly found in fishes.

In step 110, the system 20 determines a relative length of the fish 42by computing, for example, the number of pixels along its longest axisgenerally parallel to sides of its identified contour. As discussedabove, the length of the fish may also be indicated by a visualcomparison of the fish to the reference object. For example, if thereference object is a ruler or tape measure, the object may bepositioned adjacent to the fish in the image in such a way as toindicate the length of the fish as measured by the scale of the ruler ortape measure.

If the relative lengths of the reference object 44 and the fish 42 areused to determine the length of the fish, the system 20 computes thelength of the fish using a rule of three based on a predetermined lengthof the reference object 44 or by inputting the length of the referenceobject 44. For example, if the length of the reference object is 30inches and has a relative length of 900 pixels and the fish 42 has arelative length of 600 pixels, then the length of the fish may becomputed as follows:

$\begin{matrix}{{{length}\mspace{14mu} {of}\mspace{14mu} {fish}} = {{( {30\mspace{14mu} {inches} \times 600\mspace{14mu} {pixels}} )/900}\mspace{14mu} {pixels}}} \\{= {20\mspace{14mu} {{inches}.}}}\end{matrix}$

Finally, in step 114, the length of the fish 42 computed in step 112 isprovided by the system 20, for example by displaying the length of thefish 42 and/or saving it to the database 24.

The present invention may also use other methods of determining the sizeof fish from digital images submitted by the participants. In oneembodiment, participants are required to submit digital images thatinclude a picture of the fish along with a picture of a human face. Thisallows biometrical features of the human face to be used to determinethe proper scale. For example, a human eye, such as the eye of theparticipant, may be used as a reference object. The limbus of the eye isthe junction between the cornea and sclera, and it has an average widthin adults of 11.6 mm that varies only minutely from one person toanother. By using the limbus as a reference object in the image, thelength of the fish may be ascertained, with less risk of falsificationthat might accompany other types of reference objects. The measurementof a human limbus in the image may also be used to determine when imageshave been manipulated, as the scale determined from the width of thelimbus must agree within the limits of its possible range of variationwith the scale of other objects in the image. A possible method of usingthe limbus as a reference object is depicted in the flow diagram of FIG.3A.

In step 202, a digital image is obtained which depicts both a fish and ahuman eye, namely from the participant holding his or her catch. In step204, a relative diameter of the limbus of the eye is determined from theimage in terms of pixel space size. In step 206, a relative length ofthe fish is determined from the image in terms of pixel spacedimensions. With these two parameters, the actual width of the limbus(known to a very slight variation from one person to another) is used tocalculate the actual length of the fish in step 208. In step 210, thelength of the fish is then provided to the tournament direction system.

More precise image analysis techniques may also be used for determininga reference scale in an image, or for verifying the authenticity of asubmitted image. For example, the techniques described by Micah K.Johnson and Hany Farid (Department of Computer Science, DartmouthCollege, Hanover, N.H.) in Metric Measurements on a Plane from a SingleImage may be used in this capacity. Such techniques are known in the artand will not be repeated in any great detail herein. However, thoseskilled in the art will recognize, in light of the present disclosure,that such techniques may be applied herein. Likewise, the presentinvention anticipates the use of similar existing and future techniquesfor size determination and image authentication.

Other means of image authentication may also be employed herein. Forexample, the tournament participants may be required to submit a raw,unedited digital image. As described above, analysis techniques may beused to determine whether any alteration of the image has taken place.In addition, one embodiment of the invention relies on the presence ofthe metadata from the original captured image as one basis for verifyingauthenticity. As is known in the art, an original digital image filetypically includes a set of metadata relative to various imageparameters. However, many image editing applications either do notpreserve this metadata, or record editing changes. Some edits may bedeemed acceptable because they do not harm authenticity, while otherscan be disqualified. Thus, absence of the metadata or the metadataitself from an image file may be indicative of previous image editing.As such, in one embodiment of the invention, the tournament directorwould automatically reject any participant submission in which themetadata was absent.

A number of techniques can be used for image tampering determination,and thus for determining authenticity.

Most digital cameras employ a single sensor in conjunction with a colorfilter array (CFA), and then interpolate the missing color samples toobtain a three-channel color image. This interpolation is typically asimple linear interpolation between neighboring source pixels of thesame color and introduces repeatable spatial artifacts that aredetectable in an uncompressed image as well as in JPEG compressed imagesoriginating from the camera using correlation with the CFA pattern thatare likely to be altered when tampering with an image. This techniqueestimates the artifact introduced by CFA interpolation, and detectsdeviations due to tampering.

When tampering with an image, the image must, at a minimum, be loadedinto photo-editing software, manipulated, and re-saved. Since mostimages are stored in JPEG format (a majority of digital cameras storeimages directly in JPEG format), it is likely that both the original andtampered images are stored in this format. In this scenario the tamperedimage is double JPEG compressed. As will be appreciated by those skilledin the art, double JPEG compression introduces specific artifacts notpresent in singly compressed images, and these artifacts can bedetected.

Most digital cameras export images in the JPEG file format. This lossycompression scheme employs a quantization table that controls the amountof compression achieved. Different cameras typically employ differenttables, and photo-editing software used to manipulate images also alteran image's quantization table. The quantization tables from severalimages, purportedly from the same camera, can be compared forconsistency. Any differences in these tables can be used as evidence oftampering.

The above techniques may be sufficient alone to conclude that tamperinghas taken place in a digital image, and likewise may not be entirelyconclusive regarding tampering, but instead provided an index of aprobability of tampering. Such techniques can be used alone or inaddition to metadata verification to determine the authenticity of theimage.

This verification process applies generally to a method for remotelyrecording a fishing catch, and is depicted graphically in the flowdiagram of FIG. 3B. In step 302 of this diagram, a submission isobtained from a tournament participant. This submission includes adigital image of a fish and, in step 304, the image file is examined forthe presence of metadata. In step 306, a decision is made as to whetherthe metadata is missing or contains any reference to an editing step orsteps that are not approved. If not, the verification proceeds to step310 for further processing of the submission. If the metadata is notpresent or indicates unapproved editing, the submission is rejected instep 308. The present invention also anticipates the use of such imageverification and authentication techniques in the context of any remoterecording of fish catches, whether or not done within the context of atournament.

The method and system for measuring fish described herein may be used inthe context of a fishing tournament in order to identify the winner ofthe tournament having caught the biggest fish. Accordingly, forauthentication purposes, each participant advantageously receives afirst validation code, such as an alphanumeric sequence, via, forexample, text message or email. The first validation code is to appearin all digital images of fishes and the main purpose of the firstvalidation code is to serve as a proof of timeframe, i.e. that the fishin the digital image was caught after the first validation code wasissued. It is to be understood that other validation techniques may alsobe used.

FIG. 5 shows a digital image 50 of a fish 42 and reference object 44where the first validation code 46 may be seen in order to validate thetimeframe in which the digital image 50 was taken.

In an alternative embodiment, shown in the digital image 60 of FIG. 6,the first validation code 46 may be inscribed on, or otherwise appliedto, the reference object 44 so as to also authenticate the referenceobject 44 thereby helping to reduce the risks of tampering. It is to beunderstood that instead of sending the first validation code 46 via textmessage or email, the reference object 44 may be previously inscribedwith the first validation code and provided to the participant at thebeginning of the tournament.

In another alternative embodiment, shown in the digital image 70 of FIG.7, a background 45, having a color or texture not likely to be found inany fish or reference object, may be positioned underneath the fish 42or reference object 44 so as to heighten color or texture contrasts ofthe fish and the reference object in order to facilitate theidentification of the contours of the fish 42 and of the referenceobject 44 in steps 108 and 104, respectively, of the flow diagram ofFIG. 3. It is to be understood that the first validation code may beinscribed, or otherwise applied to, either, or both, of the referenceobject 44 and/or the background 45. It is also to be understood that,similarly to the embodiment of FIG. 6, instead of sending the firstvalidation code 46 via text message or email, the reference object 44and/or the background 45 may be previously inscribed with the firstvalidation code and provided to the participant at the beginning of thetournament.

In another alternative embodiment, shown in the digital image 80 of FIG.8, a background grid 47 providing reference lines 49 at predetermineddistances, may be positioned underneath the fish 42 or reference objectin order to facilitate the identification of the contours of the fish 42and of the reference object 44 in steps 108 and 104, respectively, ofthe flow diagram of FIG. 3. Furthermore, the background grid 47 of FIG.8 may also have a color or texture not likely to be found in any fish orreference object, so as to heighten color or texture contrasts of thefish and the reference object in order to further facilitate theidentification of the contours of the fish 42 and of the referenceobject 44 in steps 108 and 104, respectively, of the flow diagram ofFIG. 3. It is to be understood that the first validation code may beinscribed, or otherwise applied to, either, or both, of the referenceobject 44 and/or the background grid 47. It is also to be understoodthat, similarly to the embodiment of FIG. 6, instead of sending thefirst validation code 46 via text message or email, the reference object44 and/or the background grid 47 may be previously inscribed with thefirst validation code and provided to the participant at the beginningof the tournament.

In a further alternative embodiment, a second validation code may beprovided to the participant at the end of the tournament so as to ensurethat the participant remains at the tournament location until the end ofthe tournament.

Referring to FIG. 9, this may be accomplished by taking a first digitalimage 90 of the participant 1, with the first validation code 46, infront of a landmark 2 identifying the location of the participant 1.Then, with reference to FIG. 10, at the end of the tournament theparticipant 1 is given a second validation code 48 so that a seconddigital image 100 of the participant 1, with the second validation code48, may be taken in front of the landmark 2 of the first digital image90 so as to prove that the participant 1 is still at the tournamentlocation.

In yet another alternative embodiment, different codes may be issued todifferent participants for the same tournament. For example, eachparticipant may be given a different code, such that each code serves touniquely identify one participant as well as verify the time periodwithin which submitted images were taken. Such unique codes may beparticularly useful for a tournament having multiple fishing periods.If, for example, a one-week tournament included seven one-day fishingperiods, a participant could be allowed to register for some or all ofthe fishing periods during the tournament. The issuance of a unique codeto each participant would provide a simple means to cross-reference asubmission with the fishing periods for which a participant registered.

It may also be desirable to issue codes to participants which aredifferent only in identifying the fishing periods for which therespective participants registered. Thus, different participants whoregistered for the same fishing periods would have the same code. Thiswould allow the different codes to be issued at the appropriate timesrelative to particular fishing periods to ensure that participants areable to use the code only during the periods for which they areregistered. However, providing a unique code to each participant wouldalso allow each participant to be identified by the code, and wouldallow a participant to register for additional fishing periods duringthe tournament while keeping the same code. The codes may also beindicative of time zones, if the geographical area spanned by thetournament includes multiple time zones. This would simplify thecross-referencing of a participant submission with time deadline foruploading the submission that is appropriate for the time zone of thatparticipant.

A digital image containing the fish caught and the code providesevidence of the catch as being from a time period after issuance of thecode and before the digital image is uploaded to the server. When aparticipant fishes for a number of consecutive periods, it will beappreciated that upload to the server may be done well after the firstperiod, as long as it is within the time limit allowed for the upload ofimages following the last period that the participant has paid for.

As described herein, the present invention provides a method and systemfor remotely directing a fishing tournament using a data network, suchas the Internet. At least one central server may be used to storeinformation regarding each tournament and to collect and processregistrations and submissions of participants. Each participant in thetournament may communicate with the server via a local computer,telephone, or other device capable of exchanging data over the network.For example, the central server may present information regarding thetournament via a web site on the Internet that is accessible by theparticipants via a web browser. Through this interface, the participantsmay register for particular fishing periods, submit payment information,receive codes, submit images and other information regarding fishcatches, and retrieve tournament results.

As discussed above, other means of communication may also be used forvarious aspects of the invention. For example, codes may be issued toparticipants via telephone (voice) or text message. This would beparticularly useful if a participant has traveled to a location whereaccess to the data network is limited or impossible. In such a case, aparticipant may register and travel in advance to the desired fishinglocation. At an appropriate time relative to the fishing period orperiods for which the participant has registered, the code may then beretrieved. Voice or text message communication may also be useful toprovide information to a participant in a remote location, or to allowthe participant to register for additional fishing periods withouthaving to seek out the nearest location with access to the data network.

A director of the tournament may also use a website to promote thefishing tournaments, and to provide detailed data regarding tournamentresults. Data regarding an ongoing tournament may also be provided viathe network, or via voice or text message. For example, a website of thetournament director may display rankings of participants for an ongoingtournament based on submissions received. The rankings may be updated asadditional submissions are received and verified. In such a case, it mayalso be desirable to show the rankings without reference to the size offish caught, so as to not influence the decisions of participantsregarding registering for additional fishing periods during thetournament.

The tournament director may also provide data regarding past tournamentsand tournament participants. For example a website of the tournamentdirector may include sections showing the prior success of variousparticipants. Such information may be organized and cross-referenced byparticular tournaments and particular participants, such that statisticsfor a given tournament or given participant are available to theparticipants and possibly to the public. Those skilled in the art willrecognize that there are many different types of data that would be ofinterest to participants and to the public, and organization andpresentation of such data is an anticipated part of the invention.

The present invention provides a great deal of flexibility in how atournament is conducted. As discussed above, participants may fish indifferent geographical locations. The tournament director may specifythat the tournament is limited to a single species of fish, or maydesignate multiple species. There may be a single fee or multiple feesfor the different species. As discussed above, there may be multiplefishing periods within the tournament period, and a participant may beallowed to register for one period only, for multiple consecutiveperiods, or for multiple non-consecutive periods. Fees for eachparticipant may therefore also be based on the number of fishing periodsfor which the participant is registered. If a code is issued to aparticipant, it will typically be provided shortly before the tournamentstarts. However, registration for tournaments may be done well inadvance of the tournament period, with the codes being provided later.Likewise, the tournament director may choose to allow registration for afishing period after that period has already begun. The tournamentdirector may also base fees on the time of registration (such as byproviding a discount for early registrants), and may provide prizes forthe winners that are based on the number of entries (e.g., such that theprize values increase with the number of participants).

Although the present invention has been described by way of particularembodiments and examples thereof, it should be noted that it will beapparent to persons skilled in the art that modifications may be appliedto the present particular embodiment without departing from the scope ofthe present invention. It is also to be understood that although thedisclosed method is used to measure a fish, the same method may beapplied to determine the length of other objects from a digital image aslong a reference object of determined length is included in the digitalimage.

1. A method for remotely directing a fishing tournament, the methodcomprising: registering participants for the tournament; receiving overthe data network digital images of fish caught by tournamentparticipants, said images containing a reference object adjacent to thefish to allow a determination of scale; and determining a size of fishfrom said images by using the scale provided by the reference object. 2.A method according to claim 1 wherein the size is determined in onedimension.
 3. A method according to claim 2 wherein the reference objectcomprises a linear measurement device.
 4. A method according to claim 1wherein the size is measured in two dimensions.
 5. A method according toclaim 1 wherein the reference object comprises a human biometricindicium.
 6. A method according to claim 5 wherein the biometricindicium is based on the limbus of a human eye.
 7. A method according toclaim 1 further comprising registering participants by receiving datatransmitted over the data network.
 8. A method according to claim 1further comprising providing to the participants, at the end of thetournament, an indication of one or more winning submissions bytransmission over the data network.
 9. A method according to claim 1wherein each participant is issued a code which must be displayed in thedigital images submitted by that participant.
 10. A method according toclaim 9 wherein the code is issued to a participant a fixed time priorto the commencement of a fishing period or periods for which thatparticipant is registered.
 11. A method according to claim 9 whereineach participant is issued a different code that uniquely identifiesthat participant.
 12. A method according to claim 1 wherein the datanetwork comprises the Internet.
 13. A method for remotely directing afishing tournament, the method comprising: registering participants byreceiving data transmitted over a data network, the participantsregistering to participate in one or more of a number of fishing periodswithin a tournament period; receiving tournament participationsubmissions over the data network, the submissions including indicationsof sizes of fish caught by participants; validating participationsubmissions as relating to fish caught during the fishing periods forwhich the corresponding participants were registered; determining, at anend of the tournament period, at least one winning participant based onsizes of fish caught by participants; and providing to the participants,at the end of the tournament, an indication of one or more winningsubmissions by transmission over the data network.
 14. A methodaccording to claim 13 wherein there are a plurality of fishing periodswithin the tournament period.
 15. A method according to claim 13 whereinthe participation submissions include digital files containing images offish caught.
 16. A method according to claim 15 wherein the images eachcontain a reference object adjacent to a fish to allow a determinationof scale for assessing the size of said fish.
 17. A method according toclaim 15 wherein metadata in the digital files relative to various imageparameters is used in determining the authenticity of the images.
 18. Amethod according to claim 17 where the absence of metadata from adigital image file is used to invalidate a participation submission. 19.A method according to claim 17 wherein an indication in the metadata ofa prohibited type of editing of the image is used to invalidate aparticipation submission.
 20. A method according to claim 13 whereineach participant is issued a code which must be displayed in the digitalimages submitted by that participant.
 21. A method according to claim 20wherein the code is issued to a participant a fixed time prior to thecommencement of a fishing period or periods for which that participantis registered.
 22. A method according to claim 20 wherein eachparticipant is issued a different code that uniquely identifies thatparticipant.
 23. A method for remotely directing a fishing tournament,the method comprising: registering participants for the tournament;receiving tournament participation submissions including indications ofsizes of fish caught by participants; determining, at an end of atournament period, at least one winning participant based on sizes offish caught by participants; and providing to the participants duringthe tournament period, by transmission over a data network, anindication of one or more submissions that lead in the tournament, saidindication of leading submissions being provided without disclosing thesize of fish caught.
 24. A method according to claim 23 wherein theindication of leading submissions is updated repeatedly during thetournament period.
 25. A method of remotely recording a fishing catchvia information transmitted over a data network, the method comprising:receiving over the data network a digital file containing an image of afish caught, the image depicting the fish and a reference objectadjacent to said fish; determining a scale in the image from thereference object and establishing a size of the fish based on thedetermined scale; and storing said established size together withrelated data regarding the catch.
 26. A method according to claim 25wherein the size is determined in one dimension.
 27. A method accordingto claim 26 wherein the reference object comprises a linear measurementdevice.
 28. A method according to claim 25 wherein the size is measuredin two dimensions.
 29. A method according to claim 25 wherein metadatain the image file relative to various image parameters is used indetermining the authenticity of the images.
 30. A method of remotelyrecording a fishing catch via information transmitted over a datanetwork, the method comprising: receiving over the data network adigital file containing an image of a fish caught; examining the digitalimage file to verify the presence of metadata relative to various imageparameters corresponding to the image; and validating and storinginformation regarding the fishing catch if the presence of the metadatais verified.
 31. A method according to claim 30 wherein the imagedepicts a reference object adjacent to the fish, and wherein the methodfurther comprises determining a scale in the image from the referenceobject and establishing a size of the fish based on the determinedscale.